HS 420 - Homer and History

(3.00 cr.)

Prerequisite: One HS 100-level course, one HS 300-level course. Was there a Trojan War? What is the relation of Homer's epic Iliad to historical events of the Bronze Age Aegean? What was its impact on the Greek world of the Geometric Era (the most likely period for the composition of the Homeric poems), a lively period of expansion, colonization, trade, and the rise of the nation-state of the polis. Investigates Homer's effect both on contemporary Greek national identity and later Greeks' understanding and deliberate construction of their own past. Interdisciplinary approach combining literary texts, archaeology, and secondary historical analysis. Same course as CL 420 .